Mental models are rather ingenious - they form as a result of us being exposed to new or different situations as we progress through life (aka learning); very many are formed during our formative years and are influenced by things such as culture, faith, or whatever is going on in the world around us at the time. We use what we already know...
Read MoreIt is often cited that 90% of businesses don't have any form of strategic plan, and 90% of those that do, don't actually follow it. That means that only one percent of businesses actually have some sort of strategic plan that guides the business. While these figures may be open to some debate, the general principle behind this is widely...
Read MoreBut what if the issue isn’t just what’s in, or not in your head, but where your head happens to be? Sometimes, the best way to kickstart creativity isn’t to push harder, but to step away and change your surroundings. There’s Psychology Behind ItWe’re all aware that our environment can affect our mood and how we feel; architects (some of them...
Read MoreI seem to be surrounded by people who have some big decisions to make - some about their lives, some about their business - some early in their careers - and some later. To varying degrees, some of these people have a history of making hasty decisions that at times worked out well, and other times not - and some of these people struggle to make...
Read MoreBut here’s the thing. There’s something about seeing a city from the open cockpit of an ancient biplane that gives you a completely different perspective; seeing how extensive the urban forest is, noting the two dog-legs in the Ottawa River (I knew it curved – but dog-legs?) and seeing a number of suspicious large structures... These are only...
Read MoreConsider the story of the blind men and the elephant. Each man touches a different part of the elephant and describes it based on his limited experience. One feels the trunk and thinks it’s a snake, another touches the leg and believes it’s a tree, while another feels the side and describes it as a wall, the fourth holds its tail and thinks it's...
Read MoreMy Monthly Game Plan includes key types of activity that I need to address each month to keep the business moving forward. Some examples of Monthly Game Plan activities could be: At 10AM on the first Monday of each month I put an hour aside for 'Monthly Game Plan-ning'. During this time I review all the important types of activity, and quantity...
Read MoreAnd conversely, the power of strong, lived values A company's values are becoming an increasingly important part of a market's buying decision making - and that market is made of up thousands or millions of individual people. And, in a world where people are losing trust in governments and other traditional guiding institutions (Edelman Trust...
Read MoreIn today's rapidly evolving business landscape, complexity seems to be a persistent constant. As business owners and CEOs, the challenge is not just to navigate this complexity but to thrive within it. We humans have been running businesses for a long time (several thousand years), so you'd think we would have a good handle on how to do that....
Read MoreAs I talk to business owners, I often enquire as to what is high on their list of headache inducing issues - and the 2 that are most commonly mentioned are money and people. And it's been like that for many, many years. The specific details may change, but those 2 categories
Read More